US: Tennessee wedding venue that turned away gay veterans will allow same-sex couples

May 02 2014
Written by Nick Duffy

Illustrated rainbow pride flag on a white background.

A Tennessee wedding venue that refused to allow two gay Iraq veterans to hold a commitment ceremony there has changed its policy, and will now allow same-sex ceremonies.

Mint Springs Farms in Nolensville had initially accepted the booking from Anthony Wilfert and Brian Blas, but later rejected them, claiming that the decision was due to state law.

However, the owners of the venue have now reversed their policy, and say they will welcome same-sex commitment ceremonies from now on.

They wrote in a statement: “As owners of Mint Springs farm we have had time to regroup and reflect. We have reached out to the community and started a dialogue with Tennessee Equality Project

“In order to move forward we have decided to change our policy.

“We will offer commitment ceremonies for any future couples that have a legal license from other states or countries.

“We also want to broaden this offer to include couples who simply want a commitment ceremony with no intention of obtaining legal marriage license.

“This will be our policy moving forward, it will remain true to all future prospective clients.”

The statement did not say whether they have reached out to Wilfert and Blas to offer them a ceremony.

However, Blas previously stated that the couple will now marry elsewhere, saying: “I think that’ll make for a better wedding at the end of the day.”